EyeFi and Wireless Flash in E-PL1?

I have a project coming up where it appears that EyeFi will be the best solution.

Taking pictures of a class and individual children, let the children/parents view them on a screen controlled by my assistant so they can select the ones they like and we order them. It's like a typical shooting session of pose, shoot, select and pay

Other than swapping out SD cards with each sitting, loading them onto the laptop - has anyone used EyeFi in an E-PL1?

Another setup and prop I need is wireless flash stands. I'll have the lenses I need for the shots. I was looking at the Canon T3i simply for this feature, because I'm not sure the E-PL1 is even capable of it. Aside from the fact that the T3i also supports EyeFi out of the box.

Guess I should just admit that I'm having a hard time shooting good pictures with the E-PL1 in low light conditions - I'm planning to get the 20mm f1/7 and maybe some 100mm lens to soon though to hopefully resolve this.

I have a project coming up where it appears that EyeFi will be the best solution.

Taking pictures of a class and individual children, let the children/parents view them on a screen controlled by my assistant so they can select the ones they like and we order them. It's like a typical shooting session of pose, shoot, select and pay

Other than swapping out SD cards with each sitting, loading them onto the laptop - has anyone used EyeFi in an E-PL1?

Another setup and prop I need is wireless flash stands. I'll have the lenses I need for the shots. I was looking at the Canon T3i simply for this feature, because I'm not sure the E-PL1 is even capable of it. Aside from the fact that the T3i also supports EyeFi out of the box.

Guess I should just admit that I'm having a hard time shooting good pictures with the E-PL1 in low light conditions - I'm planning to get the 20mm f1/7 and maybe some 100mm lens to soon though to hopefully resolve this.

Any suggestions or help is appreciated!

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Yes, the E-PL1 will do everything you need. You can put an EyeFi card in it, and you can use the pop-up flash as a Wireless Remote Flash Commander to trigger an infinite amount of wireless flashes in three different customizable groups. Turn RC mode ON in the menu (Camera 2 menu set), then when you hit OK it'll automatically open up your Remote Flash control panel. Hit INFO to cycle back to the regular menu (which you should change to the Super Control Panel, aka SCP... just another random hint). Turn your flash to Auto and pop-up the remote commander, and you're good to go. You can choose which control group (ie, A, B, C) you want each flash to be in, and it will take on the settings you've assigned to that flash group. Of course, you want to get the R-series Olympus flashes like the FL-50R (suggested) or the FL-36R (decent output, but slow recycle time).

And yes, a fast prime like the 20mm f/1.7 and a fast 100mm prime will solve your low-light problems. It's all in the lenses.

PS, the Canon 7D, 60D, and now the T3i were the first Canons to offer wireless flash control built into the pop-up flash. Olympus has been doing this since 2007 starting with the E-3, and with every subsequent Olympus camera since, both E-System DSLRs and PEN system cameras. Before the 7D in 2009, you would have to buy a separate flash just to act as a commander on the Canon system (not a cheap endeavor!).

No reason that Eye-fi wouldn't work, works great in my e-p1. I just got mine about a month ago and I must say, it is pretty badass! I put a 32gb micro sd in my android phone - I can transfer to my phone while out, and it'll upload over 3g to my picasa albums, and when I get home the phone then uploads to my PC in whatever folder I designate; had the X2 Connect for a week then went for the X2 pro due to raw file support.

No reason that Eye-fi wouldn't work, works great in my e-p1. I just got mine about a month ago and I must say, it is pretty badass! I put a 32gb micro sd in my android phone - I can transfer to my phone while out, and it'll upload over 3g to my picasa albums, and when I get home the phone then uploads to my PC in whatever folder I designate; had the X2 Connect for a week then went for the X2 pro due to raw file support.

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pxpaulx thanks for the feedback.. Which Eye-fi cards have you purchased if you don't mind sharing? There are a few that can be used if I've been doing the correct searches

Yes, the E-PL1 will do everything you need. You can put an EyeFi card in it, and you can use the pop-up flash as a Wireless Remote Flash Commander to trigger an infinite amount of wireless flashes in three different customizable groups.

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Hey Ned.. Thanks! I'm a bit excited, but let me get this straight first.. So the e-pl1 can do the wireless flash out of the box? Meaning it can connect to wireless flash props and trigger based on me pressing down and taking pictures?

I bought 2 Connect x2 4gb cards from woot.com (one of their sale sites anyway, it was a daily deal for $20 plus $5 shipping) - the Mobile x2 ups the size to 8gb which may or may not be necessary. If you're going to shoot only jpeg I probably wouldn't bother because you can set the card up to start deleting files when it reaches a certain full capacity (like from 20-90% in 10% increments). If the JPEG files are 5mb you'd have to get up to 800 shots before filling the card.

I ended up buying an 8gb x2 Pro card on ebay from a company called blinq that I guess sells returned stock - got it for $58 which was a steal (just checked and they've upped the price to about $70). The Pro card adds geotagging (not too exact, but good enough to give a rough idea) and raw file transfer support, as well as hotspot access through national chain type wifi companies (like at a starbucks for example).

Unless you know you need more space, Raw support or want the other two features, the x2 Connect is pretty much just as good an option for about half the price.

Hey Ned.. Thanks! I'm a bit excited, but let me get this straight first.. So the e-pl1 can do the wireless flash out of the box? Meaning it can connect to wireless flash props and trigger based on me pressing down and taking pictures?

I've done essentially what you're asking, but with product photos. I have a white background and tripod set up for the products in my office (small military lights). I use an E-PL2 and the Metz 44 flash wirelessly (almost always in manual for max DOF). I compose, shoot a couple (bracketing the flash output), set the camera down, spin around in my chair to my Mac, and the photos are there waiting. It just works the way things should.